1. Technical Field
Embodiments of the present invention are related to the field of electronic devices, and in particular, to wireless network devices.
2. Description of Related Art
An Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard (published 1999, IEEE Standards Board, Piscataway, N.Y.) and later versions and amendments (hereinafter collectively “IEEE 802.11”), define aspects of Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs). Within this IEEE 802.11 standard, management frames are used, but currently there are no security mechanisms to protect the management frames that are sent before keys are in place. For example, Beacon frames, Probe Response frames and like management frames contain valuable wireless network information and are subject to forgery. In one illustrative case, the consequences of a forged Beacon or Probe Response frame may create a denial-of-service attack.
The current version of the IEEE 802.11 standard prevents direct protection for management frames, such as Beacon and Probe Response frames. A data link protocol may only provide frame protection after a session key is in place, which for IEEE 802.11 is after a four-way handshake. Since such management frames are sent before the four-way handshake, the management frames are not protected by using existing techniques. Under IEEE 802.11w, a working group of the IEEE currently is working on enhancements to the IEEE 802.11 Media Access (MAC) layer to increase the security of management frames.